Letters to Marie
by bilaterus
Summary: Marie has had to leave, and with no way to contact her, Thomas starts writing letters to her about memories they shared. A series of Thomas and Marie drabbles, of varying levels of fluff. Events based on true stories. I do not own Marie Flynn or Thomas Fletcher. Now showing Chapter 4: Friday Nights.
1. Just Who IS He?

Marie Flynn and Thomas Fletcher are the property of Sam-ely-ember, Melissa Thomas and Angelus 19. Find them on deviantART.

* * *

**Hello, Marie.**

**Things are tough, with you being gone. I mean, ever since I can remember, you were there. I couldn't imagine life without you. And now...**

**Anyway, I know the real you can't see this - and I don't know if you ever will - but writing these little letters... it just helps to keep you close. So here goes.**

* * *

**Do you remember the time when you thought I was a girl?**

"Hey, Jasmine?" a very young Marie whispered one day, as she sat next to her best friend on the school playground.

"What is it?"

"Do you think Thomas is a girl?"

Jasmine snorted in a burst of suppressed laughter.

"D-Don't laugh, I'm being serious!" Marie squeaked, which only caused Jasmine to start laughing harder. She shoved her giggling friend lightly. "Stopp!"

"Ok, ok," Jasmine said, calming down. "Hm… Why would he be a girl? He looks like a boy to me."

"Well, he's really quiet, always reading," Marie listed, screwing up her face in concentration as she tried to recall his relevant traits. "And he doesn't hang around with a group of other boys. Isn't that weird? I thought boys were all sports-like and loud and hung around with other boys and stuff."

Thomas was reading on a bench and Jasmine glanced in his general direction. "Don't we go to his house all the time?" she asked. "He is your step-cousin, after all."

"Yeah but we've never really played together," Marie admitted. "He'd always get all red, then run off and bury his nose in a book all day. It must be because he's not really a guy and he's shy about it!"

"But he's your uncle Ferb's _son_," Jasmine said. "...Isn't he?"

"Maybe they're in on it too." Then Marie gasped. "Maybe he's not even a human! Maybe he's a robot!"

"Or an alien!" Jasmine exclaimed.

"Or an octopus!"

"Well he can't be all of them," Jasmine said. "That'd be way too weird."

"Hm..." They both resumed staring at Thomas, who was blissfully oblivious to the fact he was being scrutinised.

Several moments passed, until Jasmine snapped her fingers. "I got it, he's definitely a boy," Jasmine said confidently. "His nose is too big to be a girl's nose."

"Ok, that makes sense," Marie said, content with the answer.

"He is different to other boys, though," Jasmine commented.

"Yeah, he seems a little far away at times, but he's interesting." Then Marie gasped, her eyes and mouth widening, as an idea formed in her mind. "We must play with him someday!"

"Even though boys are pretty icky,," Jasmine smiled, "He seems cool. I wouldn't mind playing with him."

"Right!"

The two little girls leaned back happily.

"Hey, Marie?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you think unicorns exist?"

"Hm..."

* * *

**I remember it especially because it was one of the first distinct impressions of me you ever had, and it brings a smile to my face, even now. Heh, and I remember how embarrassed you used to get when I teased you about it.**

**I miss you, Marie.**


	2. Jealousy

Response to Platyman: Thanks for the detailed review (which was suspiciously quick... are you having me secretly followed?) and I was glad to hear you liked both this and my other one-shot. I'd have written since the last update, despite Blythe's practical non-existence, but I was really out of ideas, on top of my inherent abysmal writing speed. Since this Drabble series is a string of shorts based on a true story, I'll be able to handle it.  
On that note, since it's based on a true story, I'll be exercising a little artistic license with the characters. I hope you'll pardon me when I eschew character accuracy in favour of a little more fluff and, at times, possible drama. It should still be a good read, I hope.

Now, on with the next chapter.

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**Do you remember how jealous I got when you spent time with other guys?**

Thomas was halfway through 'War and Peace' when the door finally opened. The unmistakeable scent wafting in was enough to identify who had just entered the house.

"You're late, Marie."

The fiery teen slipped off her coat and bag, skipping lightly to the spot besides Thomas, who caved and finally looked up from his book.

"You've been waiting? For how long?" she asked playfully, peering over at the page he was on.

"Just a short while," Thomas said, quickly shutting the book. He decided not to tell her he had gotten halfway through the book since he had started waiting and opted to change the subject.

"So, how was Pierre?"

"It went great! We got so much of the project done-"

"No no," Thomas interrupted. "How was _Pierre_?"

"Oh, he was lovely," Marie said brightly. "He's handsome, and so refined and educated. His hair was perfect... oh, and his accent..." She began to stare, almost dreamily, in the air.

"You've mentioned it," Thomas said flatly. "What I mean is... did he touch you -" his hand tickles her side - "did he tease you -" he poked her cheek - "did he kiss you?" He leaned forward...

Marie swatted him away. "Stop that!" she giggled. "You know we didn't do any of those things. It was just a project."

Thomas feigned disappointment. "Well do you know if he liked you at least?"

Marie scoffed. "C'mon, Tom, I think I'd know if someone liked me."

Thomas snorted.

"I got it," Marie said suddenly. "You're jealous."

Thomas raised an eyebrow. "Jealous?"

"Yeah, it totally makes sense! Usually you're the guy I spend the most time with-"

"Marie-"

"And now that I'm spending all this time with Pierre, your position as my best guy friend is under threat-"

"Marie-!"

"Well cheer up, Tom," Marie said soothingly. "The big mean French guy is gone now, because we've finished the project. You don't have to be jealous any more."

Thomas sighed. "Well, you'd be jealous too if I hung out with other girls. In fact," he added slyly, a grin creeping on his face, "there is this girl I hang out with these days. Quite a lot, actually."

"Really?" Marie asked in disbelief. "I thought I was the only girl you hung out with?"

"Oh yes, we hang out after classes mostly," Thomas said. "We have a lot of fun together."

"Is that so," Marie said, leaning back against the sofa and crossing her arms. "You've never told me about her before,"

Marie's behaviour did not escape Thomas's notice. "Yes, she's particularly intelligent, and quite beautiful," he continued. "She loves music, and she's extremely creative. In fact, I think you two would really get along."

"I'm sure," Marie said, almost icily.

Thomas clicked his fingers in inspiration. "We should all grab a bite to eat one day. Wouldn't that be lovely?"

"Peachy."

"Yes," Thomas said, casually laying a hand on the pillow beside him. "I think you'll really like Jasmine."

"You-!"

Within a second, Marie was upon him, trying to hit as many parts of Thomas as possible through the pillow he had snatched up. "Making - me - think - there - was - a - real - girl -"

"I'll tell Jasmine she's not real then," Thomas smirked, from behind the pillow. "She'll be devastated."

"Argh-!" Marie clenched her fists, while unable to suppress the grin on her face. "Thomas Fletcher, you are so...!" She let her hands fall, breathing hard and still smiling as she slumped back into the sofa.

"You were so jealous," Thomas smiled, lowering the pillow and say at ease again. "I could see it in your eyes."

"Stoppp," she insisted, holding her head in shame. "I can't believe I got all flustered like that..."

"I guess we're both as bad as each other after all."

They shared a quiet moment. Thomas glanced over at Marie, who seemed to be glowing in the room's dim light.

"Tommy?"

"Yeah?"

"Promise me that no other girl will take you away? That you'll always be here?"

Thomas smiled and took her hand in his. "Always."

* * *

**Despite how primitive it was, I just couldn't help being jealous. At the time, teasing you was my coping mechanism.**

**It was fine, of course, for you to hang around with other guys then. But you were, and always will be, the only girl for me.**

**I miss you, Marie.**

* * *

Hey guys. Please review and tell me what you think! Take care now.


	3. Accents

You may be pleased to know that this is one series I can definitely update regularly, roughly once every three days. I've certainly got a good chunk planned already.

On with the piece.

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**Do you remember how much you loved my accent?**

It was just one summer day among many. Thomas and Marie were leaning against the old tree, relaxing and waiting for inspiration to strike. Thomas was reading a book on 16th Century poetry, while Marie seemed to be deep in thought. Then, without warning, she leaned over.

"Tommy?"

With a miniscule sigh, he looked up. "What is it, Marie?"

Had Marie looked carefully, she might have noticed that her cousin looked slightly annoyed by her interruption, as he always seemed to look. But she didn't. "Have I ever told you how much I love your accent?" she said.

"Yes. Twice this week already."

"But it's just so awesome!" she exclaimed, throwing her arms up in excitement. "It's all British-y and deep! If I had an accent like that, I would talk to myself all day!"

"That's because you're crazy," Thomas said. carefully marking the page about iambic pentameter he had reached. He knew he wasn't going to get any more read now that Marie had something in her head.

"I am not!" Marie huffed. "I'm lovable and eccentric, just like Mom and Dad say."

"Sounds crazy to me."

She shoved him lightly, causing Thomas to chuckle. Then their eyes met and Marie started giggling uncontrollably at his unmistakeably British laughter, and it was Thomas's turn to shove her in a mix of annoyance and amusement.

"So wait," Marie said after they both calmed down a little more. "How is it that your accent is so British? I mean, you've grown up here pretty much all your life, right?"

"I spend a lot of time with Dad," he explained simply. "And Mum's accent is actually similar-"

Marie giggled again. "Heehee, you said 'Mum'!"

"What?"

"Like you're the Queen of England!" she exclaimed.

There was a pause as Thomas stared at her still enthusiastic expression. "Marie, that makes no sense."

"'Look at me, I'm Tommy," Marie continued, undeterred, in a terrible British accent. "And I'm all Britishy and posh,"

"Marie-"

"And I love drinking tea like the grown-ups,"

"Marie!"

He had stood and grabbed her by the arm and she stopped, looking up at him with her big, blue eyes.

"T-Tea is really good," he mumbled, turning his face away as it grew red. "Also your accent was terrible."

"Aww, I wish I could change my boring voice to a proper British one." she said longingly. Marie then gasped, in her trademark fashion. "Tommy! I've got it!"

The fiery red-head immediately leapt up as though charged. She began brainstorming ideas about a machine that would allow people to swap voices with other people all over the world. A machine that was cool, efficient, pink, and totally cool.

Thomas leaned back against the tree and watched her leap around. Smiling, he murmured a few lines to himself. "I hope your 'boring voice' is here to stay; your accent truly brightens up my day."

"Did you say something, Tommy?" Marie asked, as she continued pacing.

"Oh, I said 'I guess your boring voice is alright'," Thomas said, blushing furiously.

"Aw, Tommy!" Marie giggled happily. "Now c'mon, help me build this thing! We've got no time to waste!"

**You know, to this day I do not understand what made my voice so special.**

**Not that I didn't believe you really did love it. But it was weird that after all those years, you would still smile when I talked to you after a long day apart.**

**I miss you, Marie.**

* * *

Take care now.


	4. Friday Nights

This one is a little... abstract. I hope you get some entertainment out of it.

* * *

**Do you remember Fridays?**

Thomas particularly loved Invention Nights: the evenings where he and Marie would get together to invent. What made those nights so special was that they would, between just the two of them, create things that went slightly beyond the realm of possibility.

It all involved the use of an invention called the Imaginator (which was called the Imaginator-inator by its original creator until the redundant part was dropped). The mysterious device allowed the users to warp into a semi-parallel 3.5-dimensional space. Essentially, anything you could imagine became possible to do in the semi-parallel world. Here, it was possible to create all sorts of things easily. You could create structures that would make M.C. Escher jealous, or use the extra half a dimension to store tools and materials for later use.

Both Thomas and Marie had immense fun inventing there. Now that they were older and they had done so much already, the things they wanted to do were not always, well, strictly physically possible. Using the Imaginator, the usual constraints on their creativity were removed entirely, and they had the freedom to do whatever they liked.

While the Imaginator itself was not a secret invention, there were very few who could actually pull off using it to invent so easily. It took an extremely high level of creativity and technical skill to put it to good use, let alone prevent a disaster from happening. For example, taking something created in 3.5-dimensional space back into the regular world had the side-effect of causing local space-time to collapse, so whatever was created in the parallel world of the Imaginator had to stay there.

After a while, Thomas and Marie decided together that they did want people to see what they were creating, so they took in a video camera in order to record their inventive process, and posted the videos online. The 'Invention Night' series quickly became a favourite among those who watched it.

However, they also decided to post it under an alias. They really didn't want too many other people interfering or asking to join in, as the Imaginator was just a little unstable and too many people could lead to singularities, annihilation of the space-time continuum, and a reduction in fun they could all have. Too many people made things get messy and less enjoyable. Marie especially found it a shame that they couldn't tell Jasmine or their other friends about the process, but it was necessary to keep Invention Nights a secret if they wanted the experience to continue.

And the experience was what they were really after. They didn't prepare anything beforehand, they didn't need to follow any rules, there was no pressure. They simply turned up and, largely, improvised throughout the night, building on each others' ideas. It was a way for them to unwind and have fun just like they did when they were kids, especially after a long week of college work and responsibilities.

That's not to say they didn't try to come up with ideas beforehand. During Invention Nights, Thomas aimed to get Marie to laugh, and Marie tried to tease a rare compliment out of Thomas, and in those pursuits, no effort would be spared by either of them.

Thomas had told Marie he had a particularly good idea for tonight's session, and he was thinking about it as he packed a little bag with his change of clothes (in case 3.5-dimensional construction got a little messy). After finishing, he mentally checked that nobody would want to know where he was tonight. Upon feeling satisfied that nobody would, and after double-checking the time, he headed out to the Imagination Garage, knowing Marie was doing exactly the same.

* * *

The garage was nothing spectacular. Apart from the odd old wrench or tin of paint lying around, It was mostly empty except for the Imaginator fixed to the ground in the centre, a cross between a large, immovable crystal ball and a shiny disco ball.

"I have got an idea you're going to love today," Thomas said, with a hint of a smile. "It will blow your mind."

"Well, bring it on, Tom. After all, I recall my ideas won last time," Marie smirked. "You said it was the 'Best Idea Yet'. I think by definition that means it was better than yours."

"Yeah well, it's not a competition, really," Thomas insisted. "And it was a draw," he added under his breath, as he punched the appropriate commands via the Imaginator interface. "Anyway, here goes…"

The Imaginator hummed, whompfed, and whirred as their surroundings faded out of view and into a soft white background. Soon, Thomas and Marie were standing (apparently on nothing) in the familiar dream-like blank space, the almost unlimited sandbox for creativity.

"Go on, you first this time," Marie said.

"My pleasure."

Thomas reached out his hand, and plucked some tools and materials seemingly out of thin air, through the extra half dimension. A flurry of dust (which also came from nowhere) and a frenzied period of creaking springs, electrical fizzling, and general mechanical tinkering sounds later, Thomas was done.

"Ooh, wow, I like what you did there! It's former president Mecha-Obama!" Marie said, delighted. "The first black and, later, first robot president!"

Thomas indeed stood beside Barack Obama who, after cybernetic technology was perfected, became part robot and ran for president for another term. The robot president waved to Marie in a refined manner.

"You mentioned you admired him, a while ago," Thomas said, breathing heavily. "Whew, I need to exercise more. Intense inventing takes it out of me these days."

"I agree. Even I'm in better shape than you," Marie grinned, as she walked over to the mechanical president and admiring him up close. "Yeah, everyone's going to love seeing him! And it gives me an idea…"

Thomas grinned. "Well then, show me what you got."

**When I watch those videos back again, I'm reminded how utterly crazy we were together. And how creative you could be.**

**I miss you, Marie.**

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Take care now.


End file.
